Brock to the future. The Brockening. Brocket man. Start fine tuning your pun game because a certain tall and bad quarterback is returning to the Mile High City.
Brock Osweiler, who last spring left Denver to sign a gargantuan deal with the Houston Texans, is coming back to the team he spurned in free agency a little more than a year ago.
John Elway and Co. made the move official Saturday, announcing that Osweiler would receive a one-year deal as long as he passes a physical Monday.
"We were going to go with a veteran quarterback, and then Brock made the most sense for us," Elway said.
Osweiler spent the first four seasons of his career in Denver. He was expected to take over for Peyton Manning after Manning retired in March 2016. But instead of re-upping on a new contract with the Broncos, Osweiler signed a $72 million with the Houston Texans.
Osweiler lasted one season with the Texans. He threw more interceptions (16) than touchdowns (15) in his lone year as Houston's starter and was traded — along with a second-round pick as a sweetener — to the Cleveland Browns in March. The Browns released Osweiler on Friday, even though doing so meant they'd still owe him $16 million.
The Broncos had a need at backup quarterback after Paxton Lynch's injury to his throwing shoulder in the preseason. Rather than going with Kyle Sloter, the undrafted free agent out of Northern Colorado who performed well in the preseason, Denver opted to sign someone with previous NFL experience.
Lynch is expected to miss the first five weeks of the regular season, according to the NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. Osweiler will be the backup behind Trevor Siemian, who, ironically, was the third-string quarterback behind Osweiler as a rookie in 2015.
That leaves the Broncos with Siemian, Osweiler and Lynch as their options at quarterback.
"He's going to need a little football rehab," Elway said of Osweiler. "We know that. We'll show him that and give him a little love."
Hugs all around!
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